The Simeone Automotive Museum will present a special show, “The Saab Spirit Lives On,” from February 23rd to March 17th. The exhibit will feature 18 cars from the collection of Bill Jacobson, owner of Sports Car Service of Wilmington, Delaware. The show will kick off with a Launch Party on Friday, February 22nd, from 5:30 – 8:30 pm. Guest of honor for the event will be John Moss, Senior Instructor for Saab, who will share memories of working for Saab for 37 years. Information on ordering tickets to the Launch Party will be available soon.

The Saabs on display will include a 1956 Sonett 1, of which only six were produced, a 1996 “Saab Talladega Challenge” 900 model, and a Barber Saab Pro Series open-wheeled racer. Many notable Indy Car drivers such as Juan Pablo Montoya began their racing careers in a Barber Saab. The newest Saab on display will be a 2011 9-5 Aero, which was the ending production of the Saab era.

Saab (in English, Swedish Aeroplane Limited) was formed in 1945 out of Saab AB, a Swedish aerospace and defence company, when Saab AB started a project to design a small automobile. The Saab 92, Saab’s first production model, was launched in 1949. GM gained control of Saab in 2000, spending $125 million to turn the company into a wholly owned subsidiary. GM sold it to the Dutch automobile manufacturer Spyker Cars N.V. in 2010. After struggling to avoid insolvency throughout 2011, on June 13, 2012 it was announced that the National Electric Vehicle Sweden had bought Saab Automobile’s bankruptcy estate.

Admission to the Saab Spirit Lives On Show is included with regular museum admission: $12 adults; $10 senior; $8 students; children 8 and under are admitted free. For more information call 215-365- 7233, or visit the Web site at: www.simeonemuseum.org. The Museum is open Tuesday through Friday from 10 a.m.

The list of cars to appear in the show are:

1956 Saab Sonett 1 (white w/ blue stripe) – Serial #6 of 6 ever produced
1959 Saab 750 GT (Red) – Featured in Autoweek magazine article “50 years of Saab & Ferrari” also appears in Michael Furman’s Automobiles of the Chrome Age
1964 Saab Quantum Formula “S” (blue with yellow nose) – Sold in “kit” form through Saab US dealers only. Raced in the mid 1960’s with S.C.C.A.
1964 Saab Bullnose Wagon (Tan) – Acquired from the GM/Saab Heritage Collection
1965 Saab Longnose Wagon (Red) – All original, only 75,000 KM
1967 Saab Sonett II 2-stroke (Silver) – One of only 258 produced, most of them were sold here in the US.
1970 Saab 99 (Tan) – Acquired from the GM/Saab Heritage Collection
1978 Saab 99 Turbo (Burgundy) – Acquired from the GM/Saab Heritage Collection, the first of the turbo charged cars that started the “Turbo” powered era.

1980 Saab 900 5 door (Black) – Acquired from the GM/Saab Heritage Collection
1986 Saab 900 T Convertible (Red) – Saab press car for the release of the Saab convertible. Was always owned by Saab and the only red 1986 produced.
1990 Barber Saab Pro Series Formula Car (Red) – Series featuring open-wheeled, Saab-powered formula cars ran from 1986 – 1991 giving many race car drivers their start, such as: Robbie Buhl, Bryan Herta and Juan Pablo Montoya
1991 Saab 900 SPG Convertible (White) – Custom ordered and made for the former Saab president Jim Crumlish
1993 Saab 9000 Cut away (Yellow) – Acquired from the GM/Saab Heritage Collection, shows the steel reinforcements made on a Saab giving them their high standards in crash safety records
1993 900T Limited Edition (Black) – #139 of 325 produced. The last year of the “classic 900” 3 door body style
1996 900 Turbo SE Talladega Challenge (Silver) – The 1996 event Oct 16 – 24th, the Saabs in the challenge bettered 18 of their own records and set 22 more. On the last day the fastest 900 averaged 143 MPH for 12 hours
1998 Saab 9000 CSET Aspen Police (Silver) – Former Aspen Colorado Police car for the first 19,000 miles and then sold back to Saab Cars USA for resale in 1999.
2000 Saab 9-3 Viggen Convertible (Lighting Blue) – 1 of 41 produced in this color in the production year 2000
2011 Saab 9-5 Aero (Silver) – One of the last Saabs to be produced, ending an era in the Saab world.

The Simeone Foundation Automotive Museum is a 501(c)3 non-profit corporation and includes many of the most significant racing sports cars ever built. The International Historic Motoring Awards selected the Simeone as “Automotive Museum of the Year”.

I am waiting the details on the Lunch Launch - otherwise I'll just attend the first weekend I think. Looks/sounds like it should be neat. There is also a demonstration day event the first weekend of 1964 Shelby Cobra Daytona vs. 1962 Ferarri 250 GTO.

Beginning in 1963, Carroll Shelby began his assault against the dominance of Enzo Ferrari in international endurance racing. We’ll look at the remarkable design similarities between the two cars that carried each manufacturer’s flag into battle and how American horsepower eventually overcame the thoroughbreds from Maranello.

BREAKING NEWS: We have just learned that Mr. Victor Muller, a Dutch businessman, founder of Spyker Cars and the recent CEO of Saab before it was forced to go into bankruptcy by GM, will be attending our Launch Party. He will make a presentation beginning at 5:30PM addressing the current state of the Saab bankruptcy and his efforts to preserve Spyker and Saab.

If you have never visited the Simeone Automotive Museum, I highly recommend. Dr. Simeone is a proponent of preservation, not restoration in cars and is a wealth of historical (racing) automotive knowledge. I learn something new with each visit.

I was looking on their website and it appears Mr. Colbeck is replacing Mr. Muller at the launch party:

Mr. Tim Colbeck, recent President of Saab Cars North America and current CEO of Saab Automobile Parts North America (SPNA), will be the featured speaker at the Launch Party for the “The Saab Spirit Lives On,” on Friday, February 22nd, from 5:30 PM to 8:30 PM. Colbeck will share his experience and insights on the Saab brand both as the Car Company wound down and the new Parts and Service company started up. He will also share the plans that SPNA has to support owners and the brand for years to come and help keep the spirit of Saab alive.